More than one in four Americans watches a video online EVERY day, according to a recent study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project. Furthermore, 71 percent of adult internet users today have visited a video sharing site like YouTube or Vimeo, up a staggering 63 percentage points since 2006. With numbers like those, it only makes sense that YouTube is now the world’s second largest search engine. What doesn’t make sense is why so many home-based and other small business owners aren’t taking advantage of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity this as yet untapped resource represents.

If you are a home-based or other small business opportunity or franchise owner, YouTube is one of the most affordable and effective ways you can gain massive exposure, generate traffic and qualified leads, increase your customer base, and make more sales. And it doesn’t require a lot of fancy equipment or editing software. In fact, many would argue that the more authentic your video posts are the more appealing they will be.

Additionally, the competition among businesses on YouTube is not as fierce as it will be in the next few years, which leads the field wide open right now. And given that Google owns YouTube, your video automatically goes into Google’s search engine. That means that, done correctly, any video you create stands a good chance of making its way to the top of the rankings across the board.

YouTube can’t and shouldn’t replace a standard website in your business’ overall marketing plan however. It can’t. No video that you post is ever going to provide the same depth of information that only a website can deliver. However, by linking your video to your website and those of others, you ensure that your prospective customers know how to find out all that they need to about you and your business quickly and easily while exponentially increasing the avenues from which you drive traffic.

Linking your YouTube channel content to your website is just one of the most basic rules you need to follow if you want to achieve optimal results for your efforts. Here are some others:

• Keywords will make or break you―As is true for any search engine optimization effort, knowing the keywords and phrases that your potential clients are looking out for is critical. Choose them carefully. The title and tags associated with your piece are also very important.

• Become part of the community―YouTube is a community of people, segments of which gravitate to one another due to common interests much like on all of the social networking sites and eBay. It’s important that you become an active participant in that community as much as possible if you want to realize the maximum benefits of your efforts. Do whatever you can to get your name and that of your business out there by taking time to post comments on other posts or joining a YouTube group that interests you. The more exposure you can get and the more buzz you can create by being a part of the action the better.

• Make sure your video adds value―Whether your video is designed to inform, educate or entertain it must engage the viewer and get them to take some action. In other words, it has to be worth watching. And that doesn’t mean you have to spend a lot. In fact, some of the most effective YouTube videos are the ones that were produced for very little money. Why? It’s because they add value for the viewer in some way that no amount of money can buy. Maybe it’s helping a viewer to solve a problem. Maybe it’s giving viewers an answer to a question or leading them to a product or service they want or need. Perhaps it’s demonstrating the correct way to do or repair something. Or maybe it’s just to make them laugh and forget their troubles for a while. Regardless of how you get the job done, the key is to create something engaging and compelling enough that someone will answer your call to action, which leads to the final point in this exercise….

• Don’t forget a clear call to action―Whether it is to contact you for more information, go to your website, click through to another post of some kind or contact you with any questions, your viewers should be left with little to no doubt about what it is you want them to do next. Having a clear call to action is the hallmark of any good marketing strategy and a post on YouTube is no exception.

There are lots of resources available to assist you in making the most of what YouTube has to offer, some of which are free and others that can cost you a bundle. One of the most affordable options out there today that we've found is Video Traffic Academy, a comprehensive DVD-based training program that will enable you to create your very own results-based video marketing strategy. For a short time only, this package is available for just $97, and it comes with a full 30-day money-back guarantee. What have you got to lose? Check out Video Traffic Academy today at http://www.videotrafficacademy.com/?hop=phflex.

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